Brothers of Sand
by kyleoo145
Summary: A young Naruto and Gaara are kidnapped by desert nomads. Suna and Konoha move quickly to rescue the boys, but it will be many years before they are seen again.
1. Chapter 1

Ch 1

"Gaara, come on!" An eccentric blond called. Behind him a red head followed, trying to keep pace, but not completely succeeding.

"Ahh, Naruto, should we be doing this? Our parents said to stay." Gaara responded. He shuffled his teddy bear back and forth in his arms as he looked around nervously.

"Don't worry so much! We'll be fine. Besides it getting boring waiting back there." Naruto exclaimed as he continued making his way through the busy Suna streets. His direction was firmly set on the training grounds his family had been shown on the tour they had been given earlier.

At the time he had just wanted to sit and watch as a pair of jonin sparred, but his mother had dragged him off. They had ended up sitting in a room with the Kazekage's children. But the novelty of the Kazekage's children and waiting room had quickly worn out on the young blond, so in a fashion that was common for himself, he had taken off to bigger better things (in his mind anyways).

His sister, Natsura, had declined and stayed to talk with Temari, who also wasn't interested. Natsura thought she was such an adult because she was a few minutes older than him. Kankuro had been busy messing around with a doll so Naruto hadn't bother asking him, which left Gaara who, although rather shy had wanted to come.

Now here he was, determined to make it back and enjoy the entertainment he had been deprived of earlier. At his back was the quiet red head that everyone was steering clear of.

Weaving past people and building with ease, Naruto grew giddy as he turned a last corner. "Huh?" was his intelligent expression as he was confronted by just another street. "I swear it was right here!" He shouted frustrated. Stomping his foot, the blond entered at momentary position of self reflection as he attempted to redraw his mental map of Suna.

Behind his Gaara had just caught up and was attempting to catch his breath, he wasn't used to all the running he was now engaging in. "Nar-u-to" he managed to wheeze out to the other boy. "The trai-training ground. It's-"

He never got to finish as Naruto suddenly snapped out of his thought process, turned around, and went running where they had just come from. He gave no heed to the red head he had left in his dust, instead focusing on the task at hand.

Gaara, after taking another moment to collect himself, attempted to give pursuit of Naruto. But it quickly became apparent that he wasn't going to keep up. He did his best but the boy just didn't have the energy to keep up with his blond companion, who after a few minutes disappeared from sight.

Disheartened by his abandonment by the blond, Gaara was left without anyway of catching up to the other boy, but after taking moment to think about his predicament he came to the best possible solution. Turning around again, he began walking in the correct direction of the training field.

Meanwhile Naruto was still running up and down street after street in an attempt to reach his goal. It took three more tries, but eventually he made it to the training ground with the help of a chunin who had been helpful enough to give directions, not that Naruto would tell anyone that he had needed help.

Upon arriving, the blond found Gaara patiently waiting for him. Taking a seat next to the red head, Naruto began watching the spectacle that was in front of him. Unfortunately for him, gone were the jonin that he had seen early, they had been replaced by a team of genin who were receiving instruction from their jonin sensei.

XXXXX

"It was very kind of you to offer my village such favorable terms Hokage-sama." Expressed Rasa, the Kazekage, as he exited his office in the company of the Hokage and his wife.

"Of course!" Replied Minato to his counterpart, "It is only fair that we treat our allies with the respect they deserve. Hopefully this will help bring our villages closer together."

It had been a long and grueling process, but the two military leaders had been able to create a much more fair and appealing treaty over the course of two hours. When the Hokage had sent a message to the Kazekage about a meeting to revise the treaty the desert dweller had been skeptical of the sincerity of the Konoha leader, but when Minato had even offered to come to Suna in person to work out the specifics, the red headed leader had been at least hopeful. And now, after the whole process had been concluded was very confident in the future of this new Konoha/Suna alliance. And while Rasa himself had been a strong advocate of an independent Suna, the treaty and the Fourth Hokage had been incredibly persuasive.

Now all that was left was to have a public signing in a few days. That itself was all fluff, but would do much to help the people of Suna accept the treaty and Konoha in good faith. For now there was just the pains of organizing the event and putting into motion the necessary changes to conclude their part of the treaty.

As the three adults entered the waiting room, they found that the amount of children left behind had diminished. Kushina was the first to react, "Natsura, where is your brother and Gaara?"

Looking up from the game she was playing with Temari, the young (but still a few minutes older that Naruto) blond responded absently, "They went off to that training ground we saw earlier." She didn't see why her mother bothered being surprised by her twin's actions. He was never where he was supposed to be.

Kushina let out a sigh and began making her way to the door in order to retrieve the boys, but was stopped by Rasa. "Why don't you let those two enjoy themselves, they'll come back when they have had their fun." He reasoned, while secretly hoping that Naruto would be able to befriend his son, a feat that no child had yet accomplished.

Kushina wasn't convinced, but when her husband sided with the Kazekage, she relented. Gathering the rest of the children they left and made their way to the Sabaku residence, where the Hokage's family had been invited to stay while they were in Suna.

XXXXX

Later that night, the families, san Naruto and Gaara were gathering for dinner. It was a noise affair, but separated into two distinct areas, with that adults on one side of the table and the remaining children on the other. But this balance by age was interrupted when Natsura shouted, "Where's Naruto?" Not hat she particularly cared, but she was hoping that bringing attention to his absence would get him in trouble.

But before any of the adults could respond there was a commotion at the front door. Furious pounding and shouts of "Kazekage-sama!" rang throughout the house. Rushing to confront the potential problem, Rasa opened the door to find a worried chunin looking at him frantically. "Sir, there has been an attack by the sand people!" he exclaimed loud enough for everyone in the house to hear him. Minato instantly appeared next to his counterpart.

"Will you accompany me, Hokage-sama?" he asked the man next to him.

"Oh course Kazekage-sama. Lead the way." Replied Minato and they quickly left with the chunin.

Back in the house, Natsura turned to her mother and asked, "What are the sand people?"

"The sand people are nomads that refused to join Suna when it was founded by the first Kazekage. They don't get along well, and fighting often breaks out between the two sides. They have become fewer in number since then, but there intimate knowledge of the desert has kept Suna forces from being able to completely eliminate them." Kushina explained, though she didn't mention that she was just repeating what the Kazekage had said about them in the treaty negotiates earlier. Minato had agreed to lend forces to help hunt down the Sand people.

XXXXX

Arriving at the seen of the attack, Minato and Rasa are confronted by many shinobi hurrying about. The nearby wall that surrounded Suna had a large noticeable hole in it, but it was already under repair.

The chunin quickly led then to the shinobi that was directing the efforts of all those around. "Pakura, what is going on?" the Kazekage asked as soon as he arrived.

Hearing her leader, the jonin in question turned to him, though tensed up when she spotted the Hokage with him. Shaking herself, she redirected her attention to her village leader, "The sand people broke through the wall here and began attacking those in the area. I was nearby when I heard an explosion and came to investigate. I found a genin team and their sensei had been killed, but no other casualties. Quickly engaging I was able to drive them back out of the village."

Nodding his way through her report, Rasa quickly took control of the situation. "Pakura, assemble a squad and give pursuit. Don't let them get away." The woman bowed and proceeded to leave to follow through with her orders. At this point the Kazekage turned his attention to the Hokage.

"I can see why you would want to end this threat to your village. If such activity has really been going on since Suna's founding then I can understand your disire for assistance." Minato said as he observed the four bodies of the shinobi that had been killed, along with those of three mummified sand people.

The Kazekage couldn't help but concur passionately, "Indeed. They have plagued our lands for too long. But this attack is strange. They don't have the strength to fight our entire village, so what was the point of even coming. If they truly wished to strike fear then they could have attacked closer to the general population, not out here. "

"Maybe they intended to wait until dark and were surprised to find that genin squad in the area?" the blond next to him offered.

"Perhaps. It is also possible that they were just attempting to lure out some of our shinobi to strike them down in an ambush." The Sabaku thought out loud. With this in mind, he call out to another jonin that was nearby. "Pakura has left with a pursuit squad, form two more squads and follower her in case she requires assistance." The jonin nodded and moved out.

"Do you believe them to be in danger?" Minato asked.

"No, Pakura is very capable. But it doesn't hurt to be sure." He replied before taking a moment to look around. "Hey Hokage-sama, isn't this the training ground that we toured earlier?'

The blond too looked around before both men came wheeling about with wide eyes, both think about their sons.

XXXXX

It had been three days since the attack by the sand people. Both Minato and Rasa were in the Kazekage office. The mood was melancholy, Naruto and Gaara hadn't been seen since the attack.

Upon the realization that where the attack had taken place was also the location that the two boys had last been, a frantic search and been launched across the entire village and many more squads had been sent out to hunt down the sand people party that had attacked.

Unfortunately, Pakura had returned empty handed, at least as far as the two boys was concerned. She had managed to find part of the group that had instigated the attack and slaughter them, but the sand people had split up and the rest were nowhere to be found.

In the village everyone had been pushed to search for the two boys deep into the night. The search had then been followed up the next morning by an even bigger one, but again there were no positive results.

Now these two father were sitting around mourning. Today was supposed to be a day of great triumph, as they were going to sign the treaty officially, but that had been scrapped for the time being.

Suddenly the Kazekage slammed his fist down, shaking his desk. "This is unacceptable! Hokage-sama, I believe we need to update this treaty of ours."

"I completely agree. We should move up the time table. I would be willing to begin the campaign against the sand people immediately." Minato replied, thought his voice was much more tempered.

Both were surprised momentarily by the quick agreement, but silence again ensued as they both were unsure of how to present their next thoughts. But how could they, said thoughts were rather brutal, though realistic. As, with Gaara and Naruto gone, neither could claim to be in control of a biju, but to acknowledge this point felt like it was to abandon their sons.

The Hokage was the first to break the awkward silence. He took a deep breath and began speaking, regret lacing his voice, "With the disappearance of our sons… neither of our villages-"

"Has a biju." Rasa finished, showing that he had been thinking the same thing. "Other with see this a great moment of weakness for both of us." He concluded.

Minato nodded in agreement, "I think we should strengthen the terms of this treaty."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

It was cold. Gaara wasn't dressed to be out at this time of night, but none the less he continued to trudge forwards. The wind bit at his neck, but there was nothing he could do about it. He hugged his bear closer to his chest and glanced around.

There were a dozen others around him, but all their features were obscured by their cloaks and desert scarves. One of the men was also carrying Naruto. He had the blond boy slung over his shoulder. Silently, Gaara wished Naruto would have just cooperated and not been such an annoyance for their captors. Maybe then he wouldn't have been knocked unconscious and Gaara wouldn't feel so alone.

When the group had first left Suna, they had rushed to put distance between themselves and the village. It had for the most part been a very uneventful journey. Only interrupted by Naruto and a group of shinobi that had been catching up to them. Unfortunately for the boys a small detachment of the sand people had stayed behind to draw attention and lead their pursuers in the wrong direction.

Since, the moon had climbed into the sky and began falling. Gaara had lost track of time and, oddly as well, his own personal demon had been silent for some time. But that was currently rather low on his list of priorities. For awhile now the red head's throat was dry. He had contemplating asking for water, but hadn't worked up the courage to ask one of the intimidating men, until now that is.

Turing his head to the closest of the sand people, he called out hoarsely, "Ma-may I have some water?" It didn't come out as loud as he had intended, but none the less, in the still desert air it was easily heard by all those around.

The specific man that he had been addressing looked down at him and for a moment Gaara feared he had upset him. But after a dramatic silence the cloaked man nodded and reached into his cloak. He momentarily produced a canteen, but before he passed it to the red head, he took a swig of his own.

Upon receiving the container, Gaara removed the cap and took a slow sip, unsure of what to expect. He was a little surprised when all that came out was water. He had been imagining something more sinister. Now with his fears alleviated he began consuming the clear liquid at a much faster rate, but as much as he drank, the container never seemed to lighten. Mystified, but not in the mood to ask anymore questions of his captors, he capped the canteen and returned it to the man with a light "Thank you."

"Of course." Came the reply and it made Gaara jump. It was the first time he had heard any of their voices. Up until this point they had all been so quiet, and when they had conversed, all he had been able to hear were muffled voices. So it had startled him to actually have the man next to him say something audible. And as with the contents of the canteen, Gaara had been expecting the man's voice to be… different. More threatening or evil, but it was so normal.

Shaking himself and continuing on route with the rest of the sand people Gaara didn't realize how much he had been demonizing those around him.

Excruciatingly slowly they continued. All around them dunes rose and fell as they pasted them by. Sand blew through the air on the breeze. Eventually the moon began to approach the horizon and the light of the sun began to take its place. At the same time, the temperature began rising dramatically. Abruptly, the man that was leading the group stop. Turning to everyone else, he began setting forth a new plan of action, "We have made good progress. Set up camp."

Reaction to their leader's orders was immediate. Everyone moved to complete whatever their given task was, though the man carrying Naruto and the one who had provided Gaara with water had stayed in place by their respective prisoners. But of all the activities, the one that drew Gaara's attention the most was two of the sand people moving to the side of a large sand dune. Standing below the crest, the men began running through hand signs, and a moment later a door formed before them.

Without any real acknowledgement by the others, everyone began converging on this new door, including Gaara. Upon entering, the red head found himself in a large excavated area. The walls, ceiling, and floor all appeared to have been converted from sand to stone. A dim light was emanating from the ceiling, but the boy couldn't recognize its source. Finally with the entrance of the last of the sand people, the doorway sealed itself shut, trapping them all inside.

Another change came rapidly after the entrance to this makeshift bunker. All the sand people who had been stoic up to this point began to regain traits one would see as normal. They began conversing openly and acting lively. Scarves were removed and faces revealed, though by this point Gaara wasn't surprised that they were just human.

The man carrying Naruto deposited the boy in the corner, leaving him heaped in what looked like a rather uncomfortable position. Turning to see what had become of his own shadow, he spotted him joining two other men on the floor. Playing cards having already been brought out to provide entertainment.

See that no one was paying specific attention to him anymore, Gaara moved to the corner that now hosted Naruto's body. Untangling the blond's body, Gaara found a piece of paper pressed into Naruto's forehead, but the squiggly lines that were held on the paper were foreign to him. Carefully removing the paper, the red head was instantly rewarded, as Naruto's eyes shot open. Unfortunately he also instantly drew attention to himself by shouting, "HEY!" It was followed by a look of extreme confusion as he found himself in an unknown location and position.

All eyes moved to the now awoken blond, and many were accompanied by grumbles of discontent at his return. But that was to be expected, Naruto really hadn't left a very good first impression of himself.

But since his outburst wasn't followed by anything, the attention of all those in the room returned to their own affairs. All that is, except for the one who Gaara had pinned the leader. He instead approached the two boys, squatting beside them.

Naruto looked upon the new face and at first failed the recognition test. He had brown hair, black eyes, and a face that look as though it hadn't been shaven in a week. But as the blond's senses all roused themselves and made the proper connections his mood darkened. "Hey, you're the guys that took us!"

The man seemed momentarily unimpressed by the boys intellect, but did give a response. "Ahh, ya we are. Though we really only wanted him, you just happened to be there." He replied as he pointed at Gaara.

Naruto was alarmed. If he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time then couldn't they have just let him go? But then he recalled the genin sqaud that the sand people had quickly slain upon entering Suna. "Wha- but you k-killed those other people there."

The leader nodded, "Pfff, that scum got what they deserved. Only good shinobi is a dead shinobi."

Naruto was about to start up an argument yet again, but Gaara spoke before him with his own question. "Why were you after me?" Unlike Naruto, Gaara's voice was meek. He was having a hard time controlling himself with this man, who he found unpleasant, being so close. The red head was also feeling a bit guilty. A part of him was blaming himself for Naruto's own predicament.

However, when the leader heard Gaara's question he faltered for a moment. He himself wasn't sure of that. He had been told to acquire the child and that's what he had done, but now thinking about it, he found that he didn't actually know what the significance of this boy was.

Naruto quickly picked up on this and burst out laughing, "You don't even know what you're doing. You idiot."

The leader didn't take well to the blond falling onto his side in mirth and reacted quickly and violently. Before either of the boys knew what had happened, a knife had been drawn and made its ways incredibly close to Naruto's stomach. His laughing hitched and the atmosphere in the room soured. Attention had once again been brought to their little corner.

"You shut your mouth. I don't know why you were brought along, but if you so much speak to me again Imma kill you just like those stinking shinobi. Got it?" he got a shaky nod from the frightened boy, making him grin viciously. "Good, now you two are going to stay over here, all alone for the rest of the day." Without waiting for a response he stood and walked away, rejoining the larger group of sand people.

Behind him he left a shaken Naruto. Pulling in on themselves, it truly dawned on both boys just what they had gotten into. As far as they could tell the worlds they had know before were gone and there didn't seem to be any hope of that changing anytime soon. Though both still held little bits of hope inside themselves, the attitude of the sand people seemed to say that they weren't worried about any retaliation or rescue effort.

"Hey Naruto." Gaara whispered, hoping to not provoke the ire of the sand people anymore.

"Ya?" the blond responded, just as softly and unsure.

"What are we going to do?" he questioned, but the boy next to him didn't respond. The silence of the normally outspoken boy frightened Gaara further. He had been hoping to feed off of his optimism, but unlike normally, there didn't seem to be any to be had.

And that's how they stayed for the time being. Silently waiting until the next act. The next stage in this sad little game would be. So from there little corner they observed the sand people as they played their games and had their discussion. It upset Naruto that the could seems normal from a distance, but that they were, in his mind, evil.

Eventually the activity began breaking up. It took the two boys a minute to notice what was causing the shift, but they soon were able to smell food. Each of the sand people pulled a sack from out of their cloaks and began to devour the contents with a nice side of water. The attractive aroma awakened the apatite of the two, but neither was dared to speak up about their own lack of sustenance.

At one point Naruto actually caught himself drooling at the prospect of eating something, and no matter how much he tried to convince himself that he didn't want any of 'those' people's food, his will weaken significantly when one of them stood and began approaching them. Thankfully it wasn't the leader.

"Hey boys, sorry to leave you around for so long. Here." He handed them a sack of their own and a canteen for them to share. Naruto didn't respond and posed defiantly, turning his head away from the man and ignoring his words. Gaara on the other hand, more or less froze when the man neared them.

With both his hands extended, but no one taking the goods offer, the man could only sigh as he released the containers and retreated back to his own comrades.

With the man gone, the two boys turned to the sack and canteen lying on the floor. Both were hesitant to accept the anything from the sand people, but neither of their bodies seemed to care as both cried out for them to take the food and water. Looking to each other, both silently hoped that this wasn't how their entire time in captivity would play out.


End file.
